Training for Climbing, 2nd: The Definitive Guide to Improving Your Performance (How To Climb Series)

route, it’s best to attempt a crux in both a static and dynamic way to determine which style yields the most economical passage; otherwise you’ll never know if there was a more effective method, and you’ll miss out on an important learning opportunity. Let’s examine the two primary forms of dynamic movement: deadpoints and lunges.
DEADPOINTS
     
    Consider a situation in which both hands cling to poor holds, and you would fall off the wall if either hand let go for more than an instant. It’s in just such a predicament that the deadpoint move will save the day, because it allows you to make a rapid hand upgrade despite the fact you can’t hang on to the wall statically with a single-hand contact point. How’s this possible? It’s the magic of the deadpoint!
    Envision a basketball player making a jump shot. He jumps straight up and shoots the ball at the peak of his flight, a moment of apparent weightlessness before gravity returns him to the floor. This instant of weightlessness and stillness is the deadpoint. Climbers can similarly exploit the apparent weightlessness of the deadpoint to upgrade a hand position as in the desperate situation described above. But instead of jumping like our basketball player, the climber needs to use a smaller, more controlled motion to facilitate the delicate upgrading of a hand from one small hold to another.
    For example, imagine a tenuous move on a vertical or slightly overhanging wall in which you want to upgrade your right hand, but you can’t make a static reach for the hold. Initiate the deadpoint movement with a small droop downward (or a release outward in the case of an overhanging wall) immediately followed by a firm drawing-inward of the handholds toward your torso. This drawing-in of your body is akin to—but less dramatic than—the basketball player’s jump, and there will be an instant when the motion peaks and you’ll be able to flash your hand up to snag the next hold. A well-executed deadpoint is calculated and controlled such that it flows naturally in perfect economy. In extreme cases you may need to execute several deadpoint moves in a row in order to climb through a series of small handholds that you could never hang on to for a static movement.
LUNGES
     
    Unlike the careful, controlled movement of a deadpoint, the lunge (or dyno, as it’s often called) is a full-on leap for an out-of-reach hold. In lunging, the arms and legs explode in unison to propel your body upward toward the next good hold. Lunges typically end in one of two ways: Ideally you latch on to a hold and regain control of your body; however, it’s also possible that you will fail to catch the target hold and end up falling on the rope or the bouldering crash pad.

     
    All all-out lunge move should be reserved for situations in which a static move would be more difficult or impossible. Here Matt Bosley lunges to crimp pay dirt at Earth Treks.
     

    Lunging is like any other skill in that it takes practice and a high level of confidence before you will be able to exploit the move in severe situations. It’s also a strenuous and stressful move that has led to many shoulder injuries. Consequently, it’s best to view lunging as a last-resort move that you only pull out of the bag when nothing else appears possible. In the heat of a crux sequence, though, it often comes down to a gut feeling as to whether you should try to throw a lunge or attempt a static sequence. Ideally it would be best to lunge only when climbing statically would require more energy. In fact, a perfectly executed lunge in just the right situation is a classic example of climbing with high economy, despite the apparent burly nature of the move.
    Executing a lunge is very physical, but also requires good timing and a belief that you can reach the next hold. Much like a gymnast attempting her hardest move, throwing and sticking the perfect lunge requires laserlike focus and an intense belief in a successful outcome. Begin by locking your eyes on the target hold and visualize exactly how your hand will hit—and stick!—the hold. Next, look down and concentrate on maximizing an explosive launch off your four points of contact. In many cases it helps to “cock” your lunge by drooping or bouncing before you catapult upward. As you go airborne, your eyes will naturally return to a pinpoint focus on the target hold. Now stick it!

Jam Crack Climbing
     
    Crack climbing involves techniques and tactics far